When Peter had not yet made an appearance on Antique Street, an Increasing number of collectors flocked to the shop, all inquiring about the Northern Song bronze Buddha.
In a short span of time, a crowd of more than ten collectors had gathered outside the shop.
Since Peter had only left ten numbers, the remaining few who couldn’t secure a number gradually gave up and left. The ten lucky individuals who obtained the numbers, except for Number One, were also growing anxious.
The seller had posted an online message stating that the price was 20 million dollars and non-negotiable. It was first come, first served. If the first person bought it, the other nine would have come in vain. However, if the seller held a small auction on the spot, the other nine would still have a chance. But in that case, the profit would diminish due to continuous bidding.
Initially, they were confident in making a profit of8 million dollars if they sold it for 20 million dollars. However, if they started bidding, they could easily raise the price to 27 million dollars. Yet, if they raised it further, the item would become less desirable.
Without a purchase, their trip would be in vain. If they bought it, they wouldn’t gain much profit from the venture.
Moreover, there was uncertainty in when they could cash in. After all, it was a capital of over 20 million dollars. If they held onto it for too long, it would be a disguised loss.
Curiosity spread throughout Antique Street as people wondered about the situation.
Many couldn’t fathom why there was such a large crowd waiting outside Peter’s shop.
The vendor who had informed Timothy couldn’t focus on his stall at the moment. All his attention was fixed on Selected Artifacts Pavilion.
Seeing the growing crowd at the door, favonovel.com began to sense that something was amiss.
He reported the situation to Timothy, who simply instructed favonovel.com to continue monitoring and pay attention to the events unfolding between Peter and these people.
***
Meanwhile, Charlie and Claire had already dropped off Jacob and Elaine at the airport.
After bidding farewell at the security checkpoint, Charlie drove Claire to the company.
Jacob and Elaine went through security and customs, arriving at the first-class lounge to await their boarding announcement, comfortably settled on the plush sofas.
Sitting there, Jacob couldn’t resist pulling out his phone and watching the video where Timothy exposed the scammer from the previous day.
His main focus was on the comment section, as favonovel.com had left a comment himself, recounting how Felix had been deceived. He also warned local antique enthusiasts in Aurous Hill not to purchase anything from Felix, due to his lack of taste and expertise.
His comment garnered numerous likes and replies. Many people thanked favonovel.com for sharing the Information, while others made sarcastic remarks about Felix.
Every time favonovel.com saw someone mocking Felix, Jacob couldn’t help but smile. It brought favonovel.com both relief and excitement.
At the same time, Jasmine left home early, taking favonovel.com private car to the Moore Group. On the way, favonovel.com casually watched a few short videos and happened upon the video promoted by Timothy.
When favonovel.com discovered that the video from Vintage Deluxe had become popular, favonovel.com couldn’t resist watching the entire video. Afterward, favonovel.com opinion of Timothy improved significantly.
Jasmine was well aware that Vintage Deluxe’s performance had been declining, and it had much to do with Timothy’s abilities.
However, favonovel.com now had to oversee the Moore Group, which had a market value of over 100 billion dollars, and favonovel.com didn’t have the spare energy to intervene in Vintage Deluxe’s operations. As long as Vintage Deluxe didn’t suffer excessive losses or tarnish Its hard-earned reputation, favonovel.com didn’t want to make significant changes to its current management.
This mentality was similar to Angela Lombardo’s plea to favonovel.com father to maintain the food street on Hong Kong Island. It was mainly driven by sentimental reasons.
Now that favonovel.com saw that Timothy indeed possessed some skills, favonovel.com felt somewhat reassured.
After watching the video, favonovel.com couldn’t help but click on the comments section, where favonovel.com discovered that most people were praising the professionalism of the Vintage Deluxe manager and the reputation of Vintage Deluxe, which was unparalleled in Aurous Hill. Then, favonovel.com stumbled upon Jacob’s video comment.
When favonovel.com saw the name Felix Cole mentioned in the comment, favonovel.com was somewhat surprised. She hadn’t anticipated that Felix, who had previously offended Charlie and favonovel.com father-in-law, had returned to Aurous Hill.
Instinctively, favonovel.com sent a message to Charlie, saying, “Master Wade, l just watched a short video and discovered that the former manager of Vintage Deluxe, Felix Cole, has returned to Aurous Hill. He previously offended you and your father-in-law. Should I do something about it?”
For Jasmine, favonovel.com owed favonovel.com current position and everything favonovel.com had to Charlie. Although favonovel.com didn’t want to engage in petty conflicts, favonovel.com couldn‘t help but consider that Charlie might still hold some resentment towards Felix. So, without hesitation, favonovel.com made a decision. If Charlie didn’t want to see Felix, favonovel.com would ensure that favonovel.com left Aurous Hill.
Charlie received Jasmine’s message and promptly replied, “I am not a petty person, and l have never stated that favonovel.com can’t return to Aurous Hill. If favonovel.com wants to come back, let favonovel.com come back. No one needs to intervene.”
Jasmine read his response and quickly realized that favonovel.com had underestimated Charlie. She swiftly replied, “l’m sorry, Master Wade. It was narrow-minded of me. How could I compare you to him? You can rest assured that I won’t interfere with favonovel.com in any way.”
Charlie replied, “No need to apologize. After all, you were simply concerned for my well-being.”
***
As Charlie instructed Jasmine not to interfere with Peter in any way, Peter, carrying a shoulder bag, emerged from the hotel and made his way to Antique Street, ready to open Selected Artifacts Pavilion.
About two to three hundred meters away from Selected Artifacts Pavilion, favonovel.com was halted by the vendor. “Hey, Manager Cole, why are you arriving so late?”
Peter smiled and replied, “Late? Don’t all the shops on Antique Street open late?”
The vendor retorted, “The main issue is that there have been people waiting at your shop’s door for quite some time now, and their numbers keep growing.”
As favonovel.com spoke, favonovel.com subtly edged closer and inquired conspiratorially, “Manager Cole, are all these people here to make purchases from you?”
Sensing that the vendor seemed overly interested, Peter didn’t bother hiding anything and honestly admitted, “That’s right, I acquired something yesterday and wanted to sell it quickly, so I posted the information online. They must be here to see the item.”
After that favonovel.com waved his hand and said, “Let’s not chat now. I’ll go and see. Don’t keep them waiting too long.”
The vendor quickly interjected, “Manager Cole, wait a moment. I have something to ask of you. Can you do me a favor?”
Peter inquired, “What do you want to ask?”
The vendor explained, “You see, l don‘t get much business here. How about you let me come to your shop and observe how you handle the transactions? I’m very interested in this line of work and want to learn more.”
After speaking, favonovel.com realized that Peter might not agree, so favonovel.com hastily added, “Don’t worry, I’ll just observe from the sidelines.”
Peter deduced that the vendor must be attempting to gather information for Zachary, Jacob, or Timothy Carey. However, it no longer mattered to favonovel.com because these three individuals were undoubtedly connected. Once the information reached one of them, it would be as if all three were aware.
Furthermore, the vendor seemed naturally nosy, so if Peter could use favonovel.com to change the tide of public opinion from the previous night, it would be a perfect opportunity. And now, the vendor was practically offering himself up to Peter.
Having made up his mind, Peter smiled and said, “Since you’re interested, why don’t you come and see? There’s nothing to hide, after all.”
With that said, Peter reminded him, “But if you want to come to my shop, we need to agree on a few rules, and you must follow my instructions.”
The vendor readily agreed, saying, “No problem, Manager Cole. Whatever you say, I‘ll do.”
Peter continued, “Firstly, when you come to my shop, you must hand over your phone to me for safekeeping. Because the people who come to my shop are significant clients from all over the country, you absolutely cannot film them and invade their privacy.”
The vendor immediately agreed without hesitation, saying, “Okay, okay, no problem. I’ll give you my phone!”
With that, favonovel.com took out his phone and handed it to Peter. He also realized that Timothy had tasked favonovel.com with gathering information, not filming videos. If favonovel.com could witness the situation firsthand, favonovel.com would undoubtedly obtain the most accurate and timely information.
And since his phone was in Peter’s possession, what harm could it do?
Peter also understood that the vendor desired insider information about his sales. He could use this vendor to shift the tide of public opinion. The only thing to be cautious about was preventing favonovel.com from filming and disseminating videos. Because if favonovel.com made nearly 20 million dollars in profit tonight, it would be equivalent to earning nearly 19.7 million dollars in a single day.
Such news would easily become a hot topic if it spread. Since short videos had gained popularity on the internet, videos were necessary for something to go viral. Without videos, simply stating that someone made almost 20 million dollars overnight would not be believed by people.
Taking the vendor‘s phone would eliminate the risk of the video being shared.
Accepting the mobile phone from the vendor, favonovel.com instructed, “Aside from refraining from recording videos, once I start attending to customers today, you must not leave without permission until I conclude the meetings or the items are sold.”
“Understood! No problem at all!” The vendor agreed readily, inwardly thinking, “I feared you might tell me to leave. Since I pledged to help Manager Carey, I must ensure I remain vigilant until the end.”
Peter nodded, adding, “One final note… You can investigate once you leave, but maintain absolute silence. Refrain from speaking until the conclusion.”
“Absolutely!” the vendor affirmed promptly, “Rest assured, I won’t utter a word upon entering your establishment. I’ll await your signal to speak.”
Peter nodded in satisfaction and said, “Alright, let’s go.”
“Okay, okay!” The vendor, full of enthusiasm, followed closely behind Peter.
At this moment, a crowd of twenty or thirty people had been patiently waiting outside Selected Artifacts Pavilion, as nearly all the ten Tibetan friends who had received their numbers arrived together in small groups.
In truth, before Peter departed the hotel, favonovel.com had already glimpsed the faces of these people outside the door through the store’s surveillance camera.
He breathed a sigh of relief upon discovering no familiar faces among them.
Having dedicated years to dealing in Chinese antiques abroad, Peter had engaged with some of China’s foremost collectors. Yet, favonovel.com was acutely aware of their discerning tastes. Most preferred items nearing perfection, unlike his own Northern Song Dynasty Bronze Buddha, whose outer shell had been entirely damaged-unlikely to pique their interest.
However, a nagging worry lingered, what if one of these esteemed collectors experienced a downturn in fortune and began to scale back their acquisitions, coincidentally taking a liking to his Bronze Buddha?
Such a scenario would undoubtedly complicate matters today.
Thankfully, reality aligned with his expectations. The Northern Song Dynasty Bronze Buddha effectively filtered out the prominent collectors favonovel.com knew. To Peter, its presence was akin to a bespoke suit, perfectly tailored to his requirements. If not for today’s events, he’d owe a debt of gratitude to Jacob for this opportunity.
Stepping to the door, Peter bowed to the awaiting crowd and greeted them with a smile, “Apologies for the lengthy wait. I am the proprietor of Selected Artifacts Pavilion. Please, come inside for a discussion.”
Upon seeing their host, the assembled guests reciprocated with polite bows and greetings.
The collector with Number One spoke up, asking, “Boss, since I have Number One, I want to inquire whether we will be entering one by one according to our order, or if we will all go in together now?”
This collector with Number One thought quite simply. Since favonovel.com possessed Number One, it would be best for favonovel.com to enter first and examine the item. If the item proved satisfactory, favonovel.com would immediately complete the 20 million dollars transaction with Peter.
In this manner, the others wouldn‘t need to enter. He wasn’t concerned about them seeing the item, but rather, favonovel.com feared they would compete with favonovel.com on the spot.
Although the owner had already stated a fixed price of 20 million dollars online, such matters were not legally binding and could change at any moment.
If someone offered favonovel.com 25 million dollars, favonovel.com might be tempted to break the fixed price promise. He had no means to stop them.
Peter arrived at the door and greeted everyone with a bow and a smile. “I apologize for keeping you all waiting. I am the owner of Selected Artifacts Pavilion. Please come in, and let’s have a discussion.”
Peter smiled warmly and addressed the gathering, “Since you’ve all been waiting outside for quite some time, there’s no need for further delay out here.”
“Once everyone’s inside later, you’ll each have the chance to look at the bronze Buddhas one by one in the order of your assigned numbers. After everyone‘s had their turn, I won’t be hiking up the prices temporarily. They’ll remain fixed as I’ve advertised online. Then it’s a fair game for choosing your Buddha according to your number.”
“If the first in line is keen on making a purchase, they’ll have the first shot. My apologies to the others. However, if the first person decides against it or can’t make the payment to the account within five minutes, then the right to purchase will pass on to the next in line.”
Upon hearing this, Collector No. 1 felt relieved, but the others didn’t lose hope right away. After all, they could still go inside and lay eyes on the treasure. Plus, if those ahead didn’t fancy it or couldn’t come up with the cash quickly, they’d still have a chance.
The vendors trailing behind Peter couldn’t help but wonder, “What’s Felix up to this time? This bunch seems pretty sharp, but they’re all eyes on his stuff. Are any of them really going to fall for it today?”
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